This quick lemon pesto chicken and orzo skillet comes together in under 30 minutes. Full of comforting cheese, a bit of fresh tang from lemon, and sweetness from chewy sun dried tomatoes, this quick chicken pasta dish is a fresh, easy take on comfort food.
![Quick Lemon Pesto Chicken and Orzo Skillet](https://www.seasonedsprinkles.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Quick-Lemon-Pesto-Chicken-and-Orzo-Skillet-3.jpg.webp)
Quick Lemon Pesto Chicken and Orzo Skillet
This is meal two in my Grief Meals series, or what people fed me after my loss.
This meal was inspired by a friend of a friend. When I say people came out of the woodwork to feed us, I’m not exaggerating. I’ve never met the woman who made us the cheesy pesto chicken, and yet she still sent my friend over to bring my family a delicious meal.
![Quick Lemon Pesto Chicken and Orzo Skillet](https://www.seasonedsprinkles.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Quick-Lemon-Pesto-Chicken-and-Orzo-Skillet-5.jpg.webp)
Quick Lemon Pesto Chicken and Orzo Skillet
The original cheesy chicken pesto she sent to us was a bake, kind of like a pesto chicken baked ziti. Her casserole had tomatoes and spinach, which added a nice bit of freshness to the dish. My quick pesto chicken and orzo skillet substitutes sun dried tomatoes instead of cherry tomatoes for an added burst of sweetness.
I also changed the dish to make it easy to make on the stove top in less time. You could still absolutely gift this dish to a family going through a hard time, or you could make it for your own family on any busy weeknight since the whole thing comes together in just a little more time than cooking orzo requires.
![A bowl of orzo on a light background surrounded by lemons, garlic, spinach and sun dried tomatoes](https://www.seasonedsprinkles.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Quick-Lemon-Pesto-Chicken-and-Orzo-Skillet-1.jpg.webp)
Dry whole wheat orzo- see what I mean? Kind of like pasta rice?
Have you ever had orzo? For me it’s super comforting since my grandma used to make it for me with butter and cheese when I was little. But if you haven’t had it, it’s little rice sized pasta noodles. They do expand when they are cooked, but it does kind of feel like eating pasta rice. For this quick pesto chicken and orzo skillet, I used whole wheat orzo for a little extra health bonus. However feel free to use regular orzo or even rice instead.
What I love about this dish, especially for gifting to someone going through a rough time, is it has tons of freshness from the pop of lemon and the fresh spinach. So this comforting bowl of pasta and chicken still tastes fresh, not like another casserole full of just carbs. The freshness is a welcome change from other casseroles when that’s what you are living off of during a crisis.
![Quick Lemon Pesto Chicken and Orzo Skillet](https://www.seasonedsprinkles.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Quick-Lemon-Pesto-Chicken-and-Orzo-Skillet-4.jpg.webp)
Quick Lemon Pesto Chicken and Orzo Skillet
Making the Quick Lemon Pesto Chicken and Orzo Skillet
![Cooked chicken breast cut into cubes in a cast iron pan on a light background](https://www.seasonedsprinkles.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Quick-Lemon-Pesto-Chicken-and-Orzo-Skillet-2.jpg.webp)
Quickly cook the chicken first before adding the veggies and pasta
- To keep the cook time on this to a minimum, cut the chicken breasts into 1 inch cubes. Marinate them in the lemon and garlic while you wait for the water to boil.
- Be sure to use baby spinach instead of regular spinach. The baby spinach doesn’t need you to pull the stems off while the mature spinach does.
- Add the spinach in at the very end so it just wilts and turns beautifully vibrant green.
- Feel free to use homemade pesto instead of store bought if you choose. However, don’t feel like you need to because the lemon adds brightness and freshness to the store bought pesto.
Quick Lemon Pesto Chicken and Orzo Skillet
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